


Snowflakes Melt Too

by Novaviis



Series: Watercolour [3]
Category: Young Justice (Cartoon), Young Justice - All Media Types
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Closeted Character, Fluff, Implied/Referenced Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Implied/Referenced Homophobia, M/M, Mutual Pining, Pre-Relationship, Snow, Snow Day, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-30
Updated: 2017-11-30
Packaged: 2019-02-08 20:06:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,972
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12872040
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Novaviis/pseuds/Novaviis
Summary: After a storm cancels school for the day across Keystone, Wally invites Dick over for some Snow Day fun. Things are warming up, but Wally still struggles with the ice wall between them (ie: his Dad).[Or: Wally struggles with his feelings for Dick and the only cure is donuts]





	Snowflakes Melt Too

**Author's Note:**

> So, the elephant in the room. I've changed my username! You can now find me here, on tumblr, and on twitter, under **Novaviis!** I really want to be able to connect with you guys and get opinions on what I should right next. So, if you want to take part in polls, see what I'm working on, or just talk to me, that's where I'll be!
> 
> In terms of the show, this is set between Insecurity and Performance, right at the end of that first year.

The heat was seeping through his night shirt. Wally groaned, kicking the sheets back as he roused bleary eyed and half awake. Turning over on his mattress, he reached through the dark of his bedroom to push his curtains back and pull the window open. A single, muted sliver of morning light leaked into the room. Moments later, an glacial gust of wind poured snow flakes onto his poor, exposed and defenseless hand. The room instantly felt twenty degrees colder. Shivering awake, Wally quickly pulled the window closed again, flopping back onto his pillows with a groan.

It took another moment of gathering the will to move again in order to sit up. Wally rubbed at his eyes, yawning and stretching with a long sigh. Leaning over toward his window once again, he pulled the curtains back and peaked outside. It was a wonder he could see at all. Half his window sill was covered in snow. Which could possibly mean...

Wally scrambled to the other side of his bed, fiddling with his alarm clock. “Please, please, please, please,” he chanted as he switched the radio on.

“...with the large snow fall, the city is struggling to keep up with keeping the streets clear. Buses are canceled across the Greater Central City Area. The following schools have declared today a snow day. McCartney elementary, Spizak High, Keystone High-”

“Yes!” With a loud whoop of victory, Wally dropped his alarm clock and dropped back onto his bed. Only then did it cross his mind that this was too close to comfort to what had happened on his birthday a month back. Didn't want a repeat of the flying snow machine fiasco. Patting around his bed in search of his phone (he found it tangled in the sheets by his _foot_ of all places, no idea how it ended up there), Wally sat back against his headboard and pulled up Uncle Barry's number.

[Contact: ⚡ Uncle Boss Man ⚡ ]

Floating ice makers, yay or nay? WW

With the text sent and a reply to be awaited, Wally reluctantly pulled himself out of bed and padded down the stairs. Before he even made it down the stairs, he could hear the TV on. Through the railing, he spotted his Dad asleep in his recliner on the couch, empty beer bottle in hand. Once at the bottom of the stairs, rather than rounding to the kitchen as he normally did, he headed into the living room. Mom was out of town for a business thing, so it was just him and the old man for the weekend. Looked like he'd fallen asleep watching football last night.

Wally tapped his father on the shoulder. “Dad,” he nudged the man's shoulder. When he didn't respond, Wally took a firmer grip on his shoulder and shook. “Yo, earth to Pops?”

Rudolph West woke up with a gasp, bottle falling out of his hand. Wally, reacting quickly, caught the bottle before it could hit the ground, grinning up at his father in pride. His dad groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. “What time is it?”

Wally set the bottle down on the coffee table. “7:30,” he answer.

Cursing under his breath, his dad pushed the extended leg of the recliner back into place and stood up. “Gonna be late to work,” he mumbled under his breath. Clapping Wally on the shoulder, he rounded him to head up the stairs to change. “Thanks, bud.”

“No problemo, padre,” Wally gave the man a mock salute. With his father waking duties out of the way, Wally made his way into the kitchen to whip up a light breakfast – meaning five pieces of toast with jam, a massive bowl of cereal, and a handful of hard boiled eggs that his Mom had left for him in the fridge. He was, of course, thoughtful enough to make some breakfast for his Dad to grab on the way out the door, complete with coffee. The drip and hiss of the coffee maker filled the kitchen, and with it the aroma of a fresh brew. Coffee always smelled good in theory – tasted like bitter shit in practice.

Sitting down at the breakfast table with his meal, he felt a buzz from the pocket of his sweatpants. Pulling his phone out with a piece of toast hanging from his mouth, he turned the screen on to find a text from Barry shining back at him.

Not this time. Enjoy your day off, kid. BA

Sweet. “Hey, Dad?” Wally called, projecting his voice toward the stairs.

His father's voice was muffled by the floor separating them. “Yeah?”

“Can Dick come over today?”

Rudolph came down the stairs a moment later, fiddling with his tie. “Don't you have school?”

“Nope,” Wally grinned. “Canceled across the city.”

“What? Why?”

Wally lifted a brow, gesturing toward the dinning room window. “The foot of snow might have something to do with it.”

Rudolph looked out the window, immediately cursing under his breath again. Wally figured that translated todefinitely being late for work. His Dad swiped his hand through his hair. “Don't be a smartass,” he replied.

Wally swatted his hand away. “So, can Dick come over?”

“Sure. Just don't make a mess,” Rudolph replied as he headed to the front door.

Wally could hear the jingling of his keys from the foyer. “Promise.” The door opening and closing, accompanied with another muttered curse about how _fucking cold_ it was outside was all Wally heard before the house went silence. Dad forgot his breakfast – well, more for him. Picking up his phone again, Wally pulled up Dick's number.

[Contact: Dickhead]

Snooooooooowwwwww day!!! WW

Wally only had to wait the time it took to inhale one piece of toast for Dick to reply.

Lucky you. DG

What? WW

Dude, you live halfway across the country. DG

Oh yeah. Wally honestly felt like a bit of an idiot forgetting the minor detail that the East Coast likely hadn't gotten the same snowstorm that the Midwest did.

Riiiggghhhttt. Well, it's a Snow Day here. You should still come over. WW

You suggesting I skip school? DG

Duh? Wasting the day with your bestie is WAY more important than education. WW

Come ooonnnnn with exams and missions we're not gonna be able to actually just hang out until the new year. Pay attention to meeeeee. WW

And in case that didn't convince him.

I'll buy you a donut. WW

Well, lucky for you AGAIN. I've only got one period today because of exams. I'll be there around 10am your time. I'll still take that donut though. DG

Wally _really_ wished that offended gasps could be translated through text.

You're a trickster and a fiend. WW

And? DG

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

The doorbell rang just as Wally had settled into the worn cushions of the living room sofa, flicking through news channels, preschool programs, and old episodes of Dr. Phil. The excitement of Snowdays always made him forget that the shows he liked to watch on weekends and after schools _only_ played during those times. He'd just gotten into some old dude trying to defend himself for having six secret families when he heard his friend at the door.

Wally was out of his seat and at the door, throwing it open before the bell's tone had faded. Dick stood on the otherside of the threshold, his hand still coming down from the button. He looked more surprised than the friend of a speedster had any right to be. Wally only beamed at him. “What brings you, boy wonder?”

Dick rolled his eyes. “Fuck off, it's freezing out here,” he replied as he shoved past his friend to seek out the warmth of his home.

“Alright, alright,” Wally laughed, but nonetheless stepped aside to let him in, closing the door behind him.

Dick shook a few stubborn snowflakes from his fringe, tapping his boots off on the rug. “So, what's on the agenda?”

“First,” Wally said before his speed kicked into gear. It was always a little weird, watching time slow down around him, his friend frozen mid-blink at his front door, but he'd gotten used to it. In the span of a millisecond, he ran upstairs, changed into jeans, a gray long sleeve, and brown t-shirt over that, and ran back down again. By the time he slowed down, the wind of his movement hadn't even brushed through Dick's hair. Wally grinned. “We head out to Gamestop. Saved up enough for Amnesia a while ago and kept forgetting to pick it up.”

Dick, taking a moment to recover from Wally's instant departure and return, gaped at him. “You're saying you want to go _back_ outside?”

“Uh, yeah?” Wally shrugged. “I mean, I could just download it, but my laptop's a piece of crap and I can get in cheaper from the used game section than-”

Dick groaned. “Okay, okay, _fine_ , but you _so_ owe me for this.”

Wally pulled on his boots and pulled his coat down from the rack, shooting the younger teen a glance over his shoulder. “It's not _that_ cold. Besides, isn't it, like, a thousand degrees colder on the East Coast?”

“Cold is cold,” Dick pressed. “And it sucks, full stop. Not everyone is lucky enough to be a walking space heater.”

“Then I guess I'll have to warm you up,” Wally sai- holy shit, did he really just say that? Stumbling through his own thoughts, Wally opened the door again and stepped around Dick, out onto the porch. “But I won't caaauusseee I'm selfish and keeping all the heat to myself. Now do you want that donut or not? Let's go.”

Dick faultered, staring at Wally unblinking for _far_ too long before he finally complied and followed Wally outside. After a minute of Wally fiddling with his keys to lock the front door, they were heading out onto the suburban sidewalk. Course chunks of salt crunched between the soles of their boots and the icy concrete.

The trip into town wasn't too long, though Wally supposed that with the cold it felt like twice the harrowing journey. Again, it just didn't feel as cold to him. Dick, on the other hand, was a lithe, seething mass of anger at the elements, buried under layers of a sweatshirt, coat, and scarf covering half his face. His eyes were left uncovered, though. Wally was almost unused to it. It'd become such a normal sight, Dick wearing either his mask or a pair of sunglasses when spending downtime out of uniform with the rest of the team. It seemed a little stupid, but Wally felt oddly privileged to be able to see those vivid blues uncovered.

They arrived at the video game store before Wally had the change to follow that _weird_ train of thought. Wally picked up his game, then spent about twenty minutes strolling the aisles with Dick, trying to wait until the other young hero could feel his fingers again before they braved the cold.

The town was already packed with Christmas decorations. The store fronts had been promoting holiday deals for weeks, but the town itself had waited until they day after thanksgiving to throw up it street ornaments. It was still daylight out, but the strands of lights hung up in the trees lining clean sidewalks gave the promise of evening ambiance.

Dick brought his hands out of his coat pockets to huff hot breath onto his skin, rubbing them together and repeating before shoving them back to safety. “So, I'm guessing it's going to be Amnesia and whatever you've got on your SD card for the rest of the day?” he clarified.

“That's the plan,” said Wally.

“It's a little weird,” Dick commented as they walked side by side between store fronts and parked cars. “I mean, it's called a _snow_ day, but the first thing everyone does it try to avoid the snow at all costs.”

Wally glanced down at him. “Thought you hated snow.”

“I hate the cold,” Dick corrected. “I have a complicated relationship with snow. It's an on and off thing.”

“You talking about snow or _Zatanna_ , huh?” Wally elbowed him. Dick elbowed him right back, a little harder that Wally's initial nudge. Though Dick rolled his eyes at the comment, Wally didn't think anything else of it, just recovered his footing with a laugh. Continuing on down the street, Wally allowed his attention to drift, as it naturally did, to the paper snowflakes hung up in store windows and the real snowflakes still drifting down from the cotton ball sky. A snowpusher up the street flashed white and blue lights on the surrounding buildings as it shoveled snow out of the roads and spewed salt onto the pavement. It was rare that Keystone ever got this much snow so early. Winters here were usually pretty mild, so the town seemed to be caught up in a mixture of awed excitement and dismay on how exactly to deal with the in-climate weather. Personally, Wally didn't mind. Ice spelled bad news for running, so patrol was bound to be a bit of a pain with Uncle Barry, but they'd just whipped up some new speed-resistant boots with better grips for improved friction on the bottom at the lab, so-

Snow hit the back of his head. Wally stopped, shivering as it dripped down his neck and the back of his jacket, soaking into his shirt. Hand flying to his head to shake the snow out of his hair, Wally spun around, ready to face the cause of this assault – only to receive another wad of snow right in his face. Sputtering as he wiped the snow away, already feeling it melt on his warm skin, Wally blinked the flakes from his eyes to see Dick standing ten feet behind him with another snowball in hand.

Wally squared off to his new opponent. “You really want to start this war?” He only just had the time to dodge another potential snowball to the face. Stuffing his Gamestop into his coat, Wally dove toward the nearest snowbank.

Thus began an epic battle waged through the blanketed streets of Keystone. They ran down the sidewalk, dodging past pedestrians in pursuit of snowy vengeance. The temptation to use his speed to gain the upper hand was almost too great to resist, but he had a feeling he'd probably be grounded for life if he exposed himself for the sake of a snow ball fight with his best friend (although that little voice in the back of his head said that it would _so_ be worth it). Gathering as many half-packed fist fulls of snow that he could hold, Wally ducked behind a nearby mail box for cover. As soon as Dick ran closer, he unleashed his barrage, watching as Dick slipped on the ice and regained enough balance to take cover behind a light post. Wally took that opportunity to jump out again, throwing a snowball where he'd last seen Dick, only to realize that the younger boy had vanished.

A body slammed into his back, limbs wrapped around his torso like some kind of weird spider monkey. Wally stumbled to keep his balance, entirely helpless as Dick shoved a handful of snow straight down the back of his shirt. Wally yelped, finally managing to shake Dick off, melted water already trickling down his back. “Alright, alright, I surrender!”

Dick beamed in victory, eyes sparkling in the white light reflected off the snow. Wally shivered, trying to shudder as much of the snow out of his shirt as he could. Dick didn't seem sorry in the slightest. “That's right. Dance, fool, _dance_ ,” he cackled.

“Asshole,” Wally grumbled with a playful shove.

“This is not a new thing,” said Dick. “But you _do_ look like an idiot.”

Wally managed to get the last of the snow out, reaching behind himself to grab the collar of his shirt and shake it out. “So do you,” Wally retorted. “Your face is _so_ red, dude. Like, it looks like someone got a swipe at you with some red paint.”

Dick checked himself out in a nearby store window. True to Wally's claims, the cold had tinted the tip of his nose, cheeks, and ears a crimson red. Dick, for some unknown reason, seemed oddly flustered about it. He wiped at his face with his sleeve. “It's not that bad,” Dick countered. “Just the cold.”

Wally lifted a brow. He'd thought that much was pretty obvious. Dick had never really been one for stating blatant fact for no reason other than to speak – that, admitedly, was more Wally's thing. “Uh, _duh_ ,” Wally replied. “And it so is. It's kinda cuuu – aahhhh – completely irrelevant. Hey, there's that donut place up the street, you wanna go in there now? Fresh donuts, y'know, warmth and stuff, let's go.”

What the fuck? What the _fuck_ was that. Wally stammered to recover from that near slip up, impatiently grabbing onto Dick's sleeve and tugging him up the street before he could comment.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.

“No, no, no, dude, don't open the door, don't open the –“

The following was a chorus of the boys shouting at each other, at the screen, and just shouting in general as a grunt monster appeared through the darkness of Wally's laptop screen. Despite Dick's fervent clicking of buttons and Wally's backseat game playing, they met their demise with a black screen announcing their failure. In the aftermath, Dick only dropped the controller and fell back onto the cushions of the couch in laughter, riding the adrenaline of gut instinct fear. Wally only nudged his leg with his foot with a grumbled “told you so”.

The lights flicked on. Wally moaned and blinked pushing his face into the couch cushions and subsequently tipping over against Dick's shoulder. Dick brought his forearms up to his eyes. Apparently, playing in the dark for hours was a sure way to get a headache. Might've had something to do with the amount of junk food they'd inhaled, but Wally would stick to the light thing.

“What are you two doing?” Rudolph asked from the opening between the living room and the foyer. His hand came down from the light switch as he shed his own coat.

Dick whined. “Hi, Mr. West.”

“Sorry, Dad,” Wally apologized as he straightened up and turned around, leaning against the back of the couch. “Video game.”

His dad only grunted in response as he headed up the stairs. Wally fell back onto the couch, stretching his arms over his head. Dick had abandoned the control in favour of scrolling through his phone. Wally, while not an overly nosy person, couldn't help the curiosity as his eyes caught the words 'Haley's Circus' and 'major theft'. “Watcha reading?”

Dick locked the screen and put his phone in his pocket. “It's nothing,” he shrugged. Wally gave him a pointed look, but Dick didn't relent; he was a good liar. Picking up the laptop again, Dick closed the game and passed it over to Wally. “I think that's enough for one night. Movie?”

Wally took the laptop and set it aside, opting to take the TV remote off the coffee table. “Let's see what I've got.”

They settled on Die Hard, triggering a long debate about whether or not counted as a Christmas movie. Slowly, the conversation died off, as the movie drew their attention in. Wally tried to pay attention, but every so often, his gaze would drift sideways to Dick. He was curled up on the other side of the couch, swimming in a fuzzy blue sweater that looked like it might have been a size too big. Probably why he bought it, honestly. The heat was one, and Dick _still_ looked like he was cold – which was likely why Wally was so confused when an intrusive thought voiced how warm and _inviting_ he looked. Weird.

Reaching over the back of the couch, Wally pulled a knit blanket down and draped it over himself and his friend, not thinking much of it. Dick, pulling his focus away from the TV, eagerly pulled the blanket closer. Seconds later, he apparently deemed that Wally was a _much_ more efficient source of warmth, as he leaned against his side.

“You are _seriously_ a walking inferno, it's not _fair_ ,” Dick groaned as he used the blanket to trap the heat between them.

Wally smirked down at him. “Are you saying I'm hot?”

Dick's face flushed. Deciding not to deign that with an answer, Dick nudged Wally. He wasn't mad enough to pull away from his warmth, though. Honestly, Wally could have fallen asleep like that. The snow storm had slowed down over the course of the afternoon, but the soft snowfall continued to build up on the window sills. They were closed in, insulated by cold and infinitely warm.

Heavy footsteps tramped down the stairs as Wally's father came back down. Split like an atom, Wally and shot to the opposite side of the couch, nuclear energy buzzing anxiety from the top of his head, though his imploding chest. Just as quickly as it had come, the panic subsided, as his dad passed them on his way to the kitchen entirely unaware.

Wally swallowed. By the time he looked back at Dick, the other boy was already curled up on his own, knees against his chest as he scrolled through his phone. Wally could barely see the screen from there, but he could have sworn he saw the words 'Haley's Circus' again. A knot in his brow and the tension in his lips told his upset clearly than he could have voiced. Wally cleared his throat. “Dude, uh... you okay?”

“Hm?” Dick looked up, clearly distracted. “Yeah, yeah, I'm good.” Sliding off the couch, Dick gathered up the blanket and tossed it over the back of the couch again. He slipped his phone into his back pocket. “Listen, I'd better head out. It's almost eight on the East Coast and Bat's is gonna want me back before patrol tonight.”

Wally followed suit, shuffling on his feet. “Yeah, of course.”

Walking Dick to the front door, the two said their goodbyes, a string of tension pulled taught between them as Dick turned his back and made his way down the front porch steps. Wally kept the door open for a moment longer than necessary, just watching Dick's back, hunched in on himself against the biting wind. He closed the door with the unshakable feeling of that string pulling him toward Dick about to snap.

“Dick's not saying for dinner?” Wally's dad called from the kitchen.

“Nah,” Wally shook his head as he joined his father. He'd brought home a bucket of fried chicken and french fries. Nice. Wally pulled down a plate from the cupboard and began assembling his meal. “He had to go home.”

His dad already had his plate ready, complete with a bottle of beer in hand. He didn't say much too it, but he was generally a pretty quiet guy. Wally didn't expect a response. Passing Wally, Rudolph headed into the living room, taking up the recliner and turning off the movie. He switched it to the News.

Wally wasn't really listening. Settling into the familiar quiet of the house now that Dick was gone, he went about pouring himself a glass of orange juice, the voices on the TV an ambient background noise. So, he didn't really know why his ears tuned in when he heard some Pro-Marriage Equality act commercial playing. To be quite honest, he only heard every other word.

What he did hear, with vivid clarity, was his father's scoff as he changed the channel. Wally carried his dinner up to his bedroom, just catching a glimpse of his father settling into his recliner, beer bottle balanced in his hand.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Part Two of this fic ft. older babes can be found [here](http://archiveofourown.org/works/12875757). 
> 
> Comments are, as always, welcome.
> 
> [「TWITTER」](https://twitter.com/novaviis) [「TUMBLR」](https://novaviis.tumblr.com)


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